Latest news with #SexualandReproductiveHealthFund
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Reproductive health advocates praise Liberal pledges but caution more details needed
Liberal Party pledges to make an access to abortion fund permanent, spend up to $20,000 for IVF treatment and invest in data collection on issues like menopause are welcomed initiatives, some women's health advocates say. But they also cautioned that the party needs to release more details, particularly on how such initiatives would be funded. While the IVF program did lay out an actual dollar amount, the party's platform does not detail how much it would invest in other reproductive health programs. "I'm excited about visible commitments to women's reproductive health, women's safety, gender," said Frédérique Chabot, executive director of Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights, an organization that advocates for sexual and reproductive health issues in Canada and globally. "There's a lot of measures that will benefit people. And we'll see what it actually looks like if they form government." 'Not a lot of details yet': advocate Chabot, however, also acknowledged there still haven't been a lot of details about what kind of investments would be made. "Is this kind of a bit of lip service?" she said. "We're going to keep an eye on the fact that the words may be there, but there's not a lot of details yet." Over the weekend, the Liberal Party released its election platform which contained pledges to "protect women's rights and prosperity." Those included: A pledge to make permanent the Sexual and Reproductive Health Fund Program, which supports community-based organizations that improve access to abortion for underserved communities. A promise to establish a new in vitro fertilization (IVF) program that provides up to $20,000 for a single standard cycle of IVF treatment. A pledge to invest in research into postpartum maternal health. A pledge to to invest in increased collection of data, particularly in understudied areas of menopause, endometriosis, maternal mortality and morbidity, stillbirth and perinatal health. Chabot said she was pleased to hear that a Liberal government would make permanent the Sexual and Reproductive Health Fund, which to date has received temporary funding. This would permit the building of real, true infrastructure in Health Canada to have sexual and reproductive health care be an area of priority, she said. "That's good news. It doesn't say any kind of amount or to what degree it would be funded, how they would fund it. So, you know, we'll keep our eyes open," she said. The Liberal Party has promises to establish a new in vitro fertilization (IVF) program that provides up to $20,000 for a single standard cycle of IVF treatment. (CBC) Chabot said her organization is also excited about the pledge to invest in increased data collection, which she hopes includes the continued funding of the first-ever Canadian Sexual and Reproductive Health Survey, which collected data from October 2024 until February. She said other countries are already conducting similar studies to gather information about residents' health status around pregnancy, menopause, fertility and sexual and reproductive health. The last government funded the survey, but there was concern over whether it would continue, Chabot said. Without this data, Canada has been impeded in its ability to make good policy decisions about those issues, Chabot said. Dr. Gayle Robinson a professor of psychiatry and obstetrics/gynecology at the University of Toronto, said she welcomed the Liberal Party's focus on these programs but also said she's taking a wait-and-see approach to funding. WATCH | B.C. women face serious challenges accessing menopause care, study finds: "The trouble with these kinds of statements is I don't expect you're going to get details of everything that they want to do. I think what's important is to say this is an important area of research," she said. "It's been difficult to get research funding for any of these kinds of things. I think the question is, do they actually put their money where their mouth is and have money available." Concerns over lack of women and gender equality minister But Robinson was critical that the party made no mention of re-establishing the Women and Gender Equality Canada (WAGE) cabinet position. That was eliminated when Liberal Leader Mark Carney was sworn in as prime minister, along with his slimmed-down cabinet. That department now reports to the minister of Canadian culture and identity. That move to eliminate the WAGE cabinet position was condemned by a number of women's health advocates, including Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights. Robinson said if Carney becomes prime minister and doesn't revive that post, it would be a "disaster for all women's health issues." She said that the WAGE cabinet position is a statement by the government that it is committed to these initiatives. "There has to be somebody who's really setting the agenda and setting the priorities and making sure that these things happen," she said. "If this potential government really believes in all of these things, then they need somebody to be in charge of that."
Yahoo
28-01-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Canadian abortion group says it may have to shutter after losing government funding
A national group that helps people who have trouble accessing abortion services says it may be forced to shut down in several months after Health Canada declined to renew its funding for the upcoming year. Abortion Care Canada says it had sought $1.3 million from the federal government's Sexual and Reproductive Health Fund for the next fiscal year but will get nothing, despite having received about $2.2 million in total since the fund was established in 2021. It's among several groups that say their financial support from the fund has been denied or decreased for next year, even as demand rises for their services. The groups also worry that the future of the fund is uncertain amid a prorogation of Parliament and looming election that may see a government change. TK Pritchard, executive director of Abortion Care Canada, formerly National Abortion Federation Canada, said the annual fund supported 77 per cent of its operations last fiscal year, when it helped 450 people access abortions. Many of them were newcomers, racialized and LGBTQ clients, and those living outside of city centres. Pritchard said they would have brought their ask down to the $800,000 range they previously received, but didn't have an opportunity to amend their application. Abortion Care Canada uses the federal funding to cover the cost of flights, hotels and transportation for pregnant people who need to travel far distances to get abortions, and to co-ordinate care with providers across the country. Until 2021, they were part of the U.S. National Abortion Federation, which helped fund operations until the Canadian branch broke off and started receiving financial support from the government. 'The reality is that unless something big changes, we will likely close. The organization will shut down. We have four to six months of funding that I can kind of piece together,' Pritchard said ahead of a fundraising campaign set to launch Wednesday. Health Canada says it received a large number of proposals in response to its call for sexual health projects in 2025-26 and 2026-27, and there wasn't enough money to support all of them. "All proposals were evaluated against merit-based criteria, including criteria related to the specificity and feasibility of proposed project activities and outputs as well as level of stakeholder collaboration," the federal institution said by email in response to questions about why the charity's funding didn't get renewed. "Abortion Care Canada submitted a proposal under this new call for proposals, but its proposal was not successful." It's not the only group that saw a funding cut — Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights, an amalgamation of several groups that promote sexual and reproductive rights including Planned Parenthood Federation of Canada, said its funding was reduced by nearly 40 per cent. Both groups say the funding cuts, which they were notified of in December, come as demand for their services has risen exponentially over the last three years. They say many people in precarious positions will not be able to access abortions as a result, and that their entire operations will be scaled back, including the number of people they serve and the level of care they offer. The Sexual and Reproductive Health Fund started with a $45-million investment in 2021, and was renewed with $36 million in 2023, with the government acknowledging that some communities within Canada face discrimination and don't have equal access to reproductive health care. Last fall, the Liberals' budget proposed $90 million over six years to expand and make the Sexual and Reproductive Health Fund permanent. But the Prime Minister has since prorogued Parliament while Liberals elect a new leader, and opposition parties have vowed to topple the government. Frédérique Chabot, acting executive director of Action Canada, said the $36 million that was allocated to the fund in 2023 has to last until March 2027. 'So it's the last of the money that is being distributed,' Chabot said. The survival of groups backed by this fund depends on the incoming government's priorities, she said, adding she believes it may become an election issue. Without federal support she predicted, "the disappearance will be devastating to Canadians and to health care systems that are already overwhelmed and overtaxed." In 2021, Action Canada helped about 100 people access abortions. In 2024, between January and November, it helped more than 600 people, Chabot said. Like Abortion Care Canada, they work with people facing the most significant barriers to abortion to ensure they can safely make it to appointments. They also work with federal and provincial governments on policies to increase abortion access. Chabot, who has worked at the organization for 10 years, said patients seem more overwhelmed, in more dire circumstances, and face more financial strain each year. 'The fact that we are going to lose funding when we were already under massive pressure in terms of demands means that a lot of people will be denied abortions moving forward,' Chabot said. The Canadian Association of Midwives said their application for the next round of funding was also denied entirely after receiving financial support from 2023 to 2025. "The needs of the communities they serve will be negatively impacted by this decision," the group's executive director Tonia Occhionero said. Health Canada said it will release the list of projects it is funding in the coming months. The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada said Health Canada confirmed it will receive $1.2 million from the fund to work on menopause education. Last year, federal funds supported an abortion and contraception access project. The society's chief executive officer, Dr. Diane Francoeur, said funding that's already been allocated doesn't usually get touched when governments change hands. 'But we'll see. There's a lot of uncertainty,' Francoeur said. She said funding cuts for sexual and reproductive care would most impact abortion education and support. "We have to secure what we have because it's so easy to lose," said Francoeur. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 28, 2025. Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content. Hannah Alberga, The Canadian Press
